ALAMOSA — This summer Alamosa County's road and bridge department will spend roughly $330,000 to pave and chip four roads. Additionally, the department will soon utilize a paint-striping machine that county commissioners approved purchase of during their Wednesday meeting.

The county will pave a total of three miles of road 1.5 inches thick. Two of those miles will be Lane 5 North while the rest will be split between the southern portions of Craft Drive and 10th Street off of County Road 8 South. County Road 112 will receive two miles of chipping from U.S. Highway 160 to County Road 5 South.

"As you can see the roads are pretty fatigued and showing wear and tear," Alamosa County Road and Bridge Director Tim DeHerrera said. According to DeHerrera, a traffic analysis conducted over a year ago showed Craft Drive being used by 21,000 cars in a week.

"It's falling apart and we need to fix it before it gets to the point where it's beyond repair."

Though not part of the asphalt budget, the new paint striper will also help make the roads safer. The county has budgeting for striping the roads annually but has never owned their own machine. They'll now buy one from Rio Grande County for $18,000 so they can paint 100 miles a year themselves.

"It's a safety concern," said Alamosa County Commissioner Michael Yohn. "It's definitely one of those items that is needed."